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,,If you considered only the financial implications of having children, you might end up childless“. I read this statement in financialplan.about.com. We can’t base our most important life decisions on finances alone, although of course it will be easier if you’re financially ready. It’s true, it is expensive to have kids, but fortunately most people doesn’t let that scare them. Kids are so much more than a price tag but it’s better to be prepared for how expensive it really is to become a parent. Children seem to rack up a lot of surprise costs for example, music lessons, babysitting costs, daycare cost, medicine and medical fees. These unexpected costs really add up. Did I mentioned the cost of sending the kids to college. Having children is expensive but it is the most rewarding job in the world. Being a parent is probably the most important thing we’ll ever do in our life. It brings a lot of joy which is priceless and very fulfilling. Becoming a parent is just a beginning of a wonderful adventure, even though it can sometimes be economically challenging – it’s worth it.

Mother is the woman who raises you, who is there for you to hold and comfort you when you are sick or hurt.The woman who laughs with you, who cries with you, who loves you, even when you aren’t exactly lovable, for whatever reason.That is what I call a real Mother and God bless them.

Being a mom can often be very challenging. This describes the many challenges of motherhood so well. A mother must be a multi-talented person, it is the hardest job in the world but also the most rewarding. In my opinion the most difficult part of motherhood is not the actual parenting part, but managing the household, making sure everyone’s schedules match, picking up the kids and dropping off kids, cooking, cleaning, washing clothes, shopping groceries and finding time to do something fun together as a family and once in a while trying to squeeze in a little mommy time-off. That is the challenge of motherhood.

Active listening is positive and effective communication skill that can improve communication between parent and child, by bringing clarity and understanding to relationships. It makes child feeling loved and worthy, appreciated, interesting, and respected. Parents expect that their child can trust their love, they want to be there for their child and hope that their child will turn to them for comfort. Good communication is an important parenting skill. With active listening you will let the child know that you are interested and involved and that you will help when needed. Active listening can truly transform how your children talk to you, it can deepen the bond, the trust, the mutual respect and mutual understanding in relationships.

1. Pay Attention: While the other person is speaking, look at the speaker directly, lean forward and maintain eye contact. Minimize all external distractions. Give this your full attention and ask the child to do the same. So turn off the TV or anything else that could disturb your conversation.2. Respond appropriately: While you are listening, you can give both verbal and nonverbal responses such as nodding, smiling, and comment to the child. Encourage the speaker to continue with small verbal comments like yes, and uh huh.3. Focus only on what the speaker is saying: Try not to think about what you are going to say next. The conversation will follow a logical flow after the speaker makes her point. If your own thoughts keep interrupting you, simply let them go and keep your attention on the speaker.4. Keep an open mind. When active listening, the listener resists the temptation to make the assumptionthat they already know what the speaker is trying to say. Wait until the speaker is finished before deciding that you disagree.5. Show Respect and understanding: Unless they specifically ask for advice, assume they just need to talk it out. Do not dominate the conversation.6. Let the Speaker Finish the Point they Were Making: Don’t interrupt even if the speaker is launching a complaint against you, wait until they finish to defend yourself. The speaker will feel as though their point had been made. Allow the speaker to finish each point before asking questions. Do not interrogate the speaker.7. Engage yourself. Children needs to know that you take their views and ideas seriously. Ask questions for clarification, but only when the speaker has finished. After you ask questions to make sure you didn’t misunderstand. Start with: “So you’re saying…”

Last days have been very challenging, so much to do and so little time. It’s seems as everyone’s schedules are overflowing with events and things needed to be done. Sometimes it feels like I’m juggling with so many things that it’s just a matter of time before somethings drops. It can be quite overwhelming as I race from one place to another, chasing the clock and strict time frame. It’s important to remember to pause occasionally and enjoy the moment. Chasing the clock can be very stressful and it can lead to one feeling exhausted and moody. Then it’s important to calm down quickly take a deep breath and try to relax for few minutes. It helps getting more oxygen into the body and releases physical tension. Take a short walk, exercise can be a great stress reliever in itself, as it helps to blow off steam and it releases endorphins. Take a break it can be very helpful to take a time-out. Sometimes we just can’t do everything by our self. Perhaps it’s possible to share the tasks with someone else, remember that the other parents are likely to be in the same situation and tasks like dropping of kids to practice can easily be shared. It is also important to prioritize those things you need to get done by taking five minutes to make a to-do list. Then you prioritize the things on your list.

I was reading an article stating that kids today are more narrow-minded and not as creative as their grandparents were. Young children can be very creative and love to use their imagination – there is no limit to their creation. Child can easily turn piece of paper into an airplane or a rocket just by using the imagination. As the kids grow older they tend to lose this talent, little by little, if it isn’t allowed to develop.

What is creativity? Creativity has been defined as the ability to use the imagination to see things differently, or to view the world in a distinct and personal way. Creativity is a skill that can be taught. Parents can help their kids to develop their skill by providing them with the resources they need for creative expression.

Why is creativity so important? Creativity is the talent to write stories and play music, or to make arts and crafts. But this talent is also used to solve everyday problems and even perform complex math operations. Creativity is not limited to artistic and musical expression—it is also essential for science, math, and even social andemotional intelligence. Creative people are more flexible and better problem solvers, which makes them more able to adapt to technological advances and deal with change—as well as take advantage of new opportunities.

What can parents do to encourage creativity?

Prepare kids bedroom or play area in a way that encourages creativity, keep coloring devices and paper handy and easily accessible, according to their age. Keep a variety of artistic materials such as clay, play dough, music, books, blocks, legos, and other creative toys within the reach of the child, appropriate for their age.

Encourage coloring and drawing, to read for pleasure and participate in the arts. Allow your kid to think for himself, do not interrupt or try to guide the child in “right direction”. Kids needs an opportunities for free self-expression, without negative judgment. The child might take that as critique and be discouraged to continue. Children can be very critical. If your child becomes frustrated because he can’t do something perfectly, be sympathetic and explain to him that everyone needs practice to master new things.

My kids are adorable, really they are the most wonderful persons I know. But as lovely as they are, sometimes they can totally make me speechless because of something they say or do. Having kids seems to multiple the opportunities for embarrassing moments for parents. Kids are completely unpredictable and when you’re least expecting they say something that can really make your cheeks turn red and just want to disappear. My most embarrassing moments are related to something they said, something totally inappropriate.

My most embarrassing moment was caused by my oldest daughter. It was in her birthday party, she just turned four. We had invited the whole family, grandparents, great-grandparents, aunts and uncles and other relatives and friends. Everybody stood around the table, getting ready to sing the birthday song. As I was lighting the candles on the birthday cake I heard her whisper something to me. I didn’t hear what she said so foolishly told her to speak louder for me to hear her. Then she said loudly “Mommy why didn’t you wear any panties last night?” Everybody became totally silent and I was speechless, just felt how my cheeks were started to warm up, turning bright red. Then my sister, thank god for her, stepped in and said “Well, let’s light the candles for you, birthday girl.” Then everybody just started talking again and we sang the birthday song for her. No one ever mentioned this incident to me, well except my sister and husband. They thought it was hilarious afterwards and today I can laugh about it, but for years I couldn’t.